Chapter 160 - 150: Invite Him to Watch the News
Chapter 160: Chapter 150: Invite Him to Watch the News
’News? Publicity?’
Lu Feng had a flash of inspiration. A thought occurred to him: public opinion.
In modern society, people like Mr. Chen weren’t afraid of underworld forces or individual power. With a single word, he could mobilize the even greater power of the state.
But there was one thing people like him absolutely feared: public opinion.
Of course, if the person in question was upright and honest, they wouldn’t fear public opinion. After surviving a public outcry, their reputation would only improve once their name was cleared.
But if their conduct was improper, public opinion would become a deadly weapon. It would draw the attention of the entire nation, of all media...
He believed in the power of the masses. Once they got serious, they could dox a target into a complete breakdown, digging up everything down to how many pairs of underwear he wore in a day.
This was precisely why so many people were terrified of public opinion.
It was also why, whenever the CEOs of major internet companies visited a new place, local officials would personally greet and host them.
To be honest, unless you reached a certain level of power, you’d be genuinely afraid of internet companies like Penguin.
If they decided to report a story, you couldn’t stop them even if you were thousands of miles away.
Thinking of this, Lu Feng said to Wang Kai, "Wang Kai, we can report on this news, but let’s change the angle. I have an inside scoop. The deceased is named Gao Qiang. He was a well-known figure in the Tianzhou City underworld and has probably committed quite a few crimes."
"Furthermore, he has a backer, someone with the surname Chen. We don’t know the exact person yet, but just report it like that."
His Qingfeng Network Company now had nearly 100 million registered users, and they were a very loyal user base.
After all, once they got used to the Qingfeng Intelligent Assistant, those users would find it absolutely indispensable.
Therefore, the impact of their news and advertisements would be no less than that of internet companies with two or three hundred million registered users.
So now, Qingfeng Network Company could create a public outcry.
This time, compared to the power he obtained from the game world, this kind of power would be far more effective against Mr. Chen.
Besides, it was much better not to be forced into using the power from the game world to deal with him. This way, Lu Feng wouldn’t have to risk everything.
After all, taking out a figure like that with physical force had far too many repercussions.
Wang Kai was astonished to hear this. "President Lu, is this information real?"
Then, he slapped himself on the forehead.
He remembered the group of burly, tattooed men surrounding President Lu the first time he brought his brother to meet him.
’This President Lu is an underworld figure too. Of course he’d know about these kinds of rumors.’
With this thought, Wang Kai hurriedly added, "President Lu, this information is perfect for us to generate some buzz and capture all the traffic from this incident. I’ll go back and make arrangements right away. There will definitely be a news story out by tomorrow morning."
Although the car explosion was already a hot topic, no one knew the specifics of the case, and no one was fanning the flames yet.
Now, if they broadcasted the inside information President Lu provided and fanned the flames a bit, it would definitely cause a sensation, even creating a public outcry.
It was a known fact that the public cared most about social issues, and news involving power struggles was especially attractive to the masses.
Once the public latched onto something like this, even if it didn’t kill you, it would skin you alive.
When that happened, as the company that broke the story, they would naturally attract a ton of traffic.
After getting this information, the two brothers, Wang Kai and Wang Xin, chatted with Lu Feng for a few more minutes before leaving eagerly. They were obviously heading back to the company to handle this matter properly.
Lu Feng then turned to Master Kai and said with a smile, "Master Kai, I’ll have to trouble you again. Help me contact Mr. Chen and tell him that I invite him to watch tomorrow’s news."
Master Kai was clearly stunned for a moment, and even a little frightened.
He seemed to understand President Lu’s plan.
Moreover, he also understood what kind of sharp weapon this President Lu now held in his hands.
Public opinion. In their country, this weapon was an absolutely terrifying threat to certain people—even a fatal one.
He suddenly felt very fortunate. Luckily, he had chosen to be on good terms with President Lu from the beginning, and their relationship was still decent. At least he didn’t have to worry about President Lu using such methods against him.
Otherwise, President Lu wouldn’t have reminded him to get a hospital check-up back then, which had indirectly saved him. He might have even tried to get rid of him.
Then, Master Kai took out his phone again and made a call.
The number belonged to Mr. Chen.
But the call was rejected.
Apparently, Mr. Chen didn’t want to answer.
Master Kai’s brow furrowed. He seemed to understand that Mr. Chen didn’t want to take his call because of his previous attempt to mediate.
’In his eyes, I must seem completely tactless, right?’
But he had agreed to President Lu’s request, so he could only keep dialing.
If Mr. Chen still didn’t pick up, he would have to ask his own connections to give the man a call.
Once he explained the situation with President Lu’s Qingfeng Network Company, his backer would probably be willing to build a good relationship with President Lu as well.
「Meanwhile.」
Mr. Chen was still in a terrible mood. Several files were laid out in front of him.
Gao Qiang was dead. He had to select and evaluate a new person.
He picked up a file. The person in it was named Liu Huaqiang, known in the underworld as Brother Huaqiang. The man had approached him before, but at the time, he was backing Gao Qiang, so he had ignored him.
Now, the man had caught his eye.
If he let this Liu Huaqiang take over Gao Qiang’s power and resources, he could become even stronger and be more useful in handling matters in the shadows.
Just then, his phone rang again.
Seeing the number, his brow furrowed tightly. ’So annoying.’
He really needed to have a talk with the person behind this Zhao Kai. The man was getting a bit too tactless.
He really couldn’t suppress his anger.
Still, he picked up the phone and answered, his voice cold. "Zhao Kai, know when to stop. And get your own position straight. You can’t represent the person behind you, after all. Your ’face’ is useless in this matter. I hope you know what’s good for you."
Master Kai wasn’t bothered by these blunt words. Instead, he immediately said, "Mr. Chen, my apologies. I didn’t mean to disturb you, but I feel this matter is also very important to you, which is why I called. Someone asked me to pass on a message: they invite you to watch the news tomorrow morning."
Mr. Chen frowned at this. He was about to ask a question but found that the other party had already hung up.
This left him rather frustrated. The man had only told him half the story.
’What the hell does that guy mean?’
Time passed. Soon, night fell, and under the cover of darkness, a news story about Tianzhou City was published and uploaded to the internet.
Soon, the night passed, and the next day arrived.
Mr. Chen woke up very early.
This was his habit. After all, waking up early was good for one’s health, and a bit of exercise could leave one feeling refreshed and invigorated.
He was just about to leave his room to exercise. After his workout, he planned to find the person behind Zhao Kai for a little chat.
He normally wouldn’t bother with a power broker like Zhao Kai, but the man had truly displeased him yesterday.
Just then, his phone rang. It was his secretary.
He immediately picked up the phone and answered.
His secretary would never call him unless it was for something important. A call like this meant there was a major issue, perhaps something that needed to be resolved immediately.
The call connected, and his secretary’s voice came through. "Mr. Chen, you need to look at today’s trending news. The situation isn’t good."
’News?’
Hearing this, Mr. Chen instinctively recalled Zhao Kai’s words. That guy had also told him to watch the news yesterday.
And now his secretary was calling him this early in the morning for the same reason.
This filled him with suspicion.
Since his secretary had said so, he immediately took out his phone to check the day’s trending news.
...
"Brother Yang Hit with Multiple Critical Blows!"
"The Truth Behind the Tianzhou City Car Bombing: A Web of Power and a Figure Surnamed Chen..."
"Damn it!" The moment Mr. Chen saw this trending headline, his expression changed instantly, and he couldn’t stop a curse from escaping his lips.